Boring, complex and important: a recipe for the web's dire future

Tested: best smart devices for the home

This article was taken from the May 2014 issue of Wired magazine. Be the first to read Wired's articles in print before they're posted online, and get your hands on loads of additional content by <span class="s1">subscribing online.

With the help of five headline-grabbing smart-home gadgets, WIRED brought a Victorian terrace house bang up to date. From wireless LED light bulbs and plug-control systems, to smoke alarms, heating controllers and plant-pot sensors, we tested each system for a month to discover if app-connected devices offer anything more than dinner-party bragging rights. Each product was rated according to ease of set-up, real-world usefulness and practicality.

ADVERTISEMENT

READ NEXT

Pixel 2, Home Mini and Pixelbook: your need-to-know guide

ByMatt Burgess

Belkin's home-control package is due to expand beyond simple on/off switches. For now, though, its Switch + Motion bundle is a slick example of how to do app-control. The WeMo app is fresh, easy to navigate and simple to sync. There are limitations to its usefulness as a posh plug-socket, but the timer options and sensor make for handy home-security and a child-friendly corridor night-light.

Your face could be your ticket at the Tube station of the future

ADVERTISEMENT

READ NEXT

Harri Valpola dreams of an internet of beautiful AI minds

ByRowland Manthorpe

Push this stick-shaped Bluetooth sensor into a plant pot and it will monitor soil temperature, fertiliser and moisture levels, and exposure to the Sun. It then lets you know when to water, feed and move it into the shade. It's fun, informative and may keep your plants alive, but ultimately it's a long-winded reminder app and feels like a solution waiting for a problem.

READ NEXT

Gett and Citymapper are launching a new London bus

ByBonnie Christian

Philips Hue Personal Wireless Lighting

Charlie Surbey

Philips Hue Personal Wireless Lighting £180 may sound steep, but you'd pay ten times that for a custom-installed system. Sync this over Wi-Fi and smartphone (iOS or Android), choose light "recipes" from 16 million colours and assign shades to individual bulbs. When you start using timers for security and delving into third-party apps,

Elon Musk is wrong. The AI singularity won't kill us all

A smoke and carbon- monoxide detector has no right to be as nicely built and engineered as this.

Unlike traditional designs, which can go off at the first whiff of toast, the Protect senses danger

ADVERTISEMENT

levels and warns of potential emergencies before going off. No need to scrabble for a stool, either - a wave of the hand resets it - and the app lets you activate the built-in night-light sensor and monitor battery levels.

WIRED Elegant design; rethinks the smoke alarm

TIRED Expensive; feature overkill

£109

This article was first published in the May 2014 issue of WIRED magazine